Dwyane Wade
Dwyane Tyrone Wade, Jr., also known as Flash or D-Wade, (born January 17, 1982), is an American professional basketball player, currently playing for the NBA's Miami Heat. Already an All-Star guard in the league, Wade is considered by many to have the potential to be an All-Star player for years to come. Early life Dwyane Wade was born in 1982 on the South side of Chicago, Illinois. He attended Richards High School in Oak Lawn. He cites his older sister Tragil Wade as the individual most responsible for his childhood upbringing and for steering him in the proper direction. His parents divorced shortly after he was born. College Wade played collegiately for Marquette University, leading the Golden Eagles to the Final Four in 2003. Perhaps his most memorable collegiate moment came in the 2003 Midwest Regional Final in the NCAA Tournament in Minneapolis. Against heavily favored, top-ranked and top-seeded Kentucky, Wade recorded a rare triple-double, recording 29 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists, including 4 blocks and a steal on defense to lead Marquette over the Wildcats 83-69 and into the Final Four. Wade was only the fourth player in NCAA Men's Tournament history to record a triple-double, after Oscar Robertson, Magic Johnson, and Andre Miller. Wade's strong play in the tournament caused his NBA Draft standing to increase significantly, and he subsequently elected to forgo his senior year at Marquette. NBA Selected fifth overall in the 2003 NBA Draft, Wade quickly emerged as a star on a relatively young Miami Heat team after averaging better than 16 points, 4 rebounds, and 4 assists in his rookie season. He further distinguished himself with outstanding performances in the 2004 NBA Playoffs, particularly against the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. In the end, however, Wade's successful rookie season was still somewhat overshadowed by the hype surrounding fellow rookie phenomenons LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony. He still was able to earn unanimous selection to the NBA 2004 All-Rookie team, and also finished 3rd in rookie of the year voting (behind James and Anthony). He also ranked in the top five among rookies in six major statistical categories, ranked second in field goal percentage, second in steals, third in scoring, third in efficiency rating (15.26), fourth in assists, fourth in minutes, seventh in blocks per game, 11th in rebounds per game, and 12th in free throw percentage. As a testimony to his success, Wade was chosen as a member of the 2004 USA basketball team during the 2004 offseason. However, he had a limited role as most of the playing time was given to more experienced veterans. But with his defense, he was considered one of the few bright spots on a team that otherwise performed poorly by the standards of U.S. Olympics basketball, eventually finishing with the bronze medal. Wade averaged 7.3 points and 17.5 minutes in the eight games that the USA played in the Olympics. He also earned himself a number two rating in registering steals against Olympic opponents, averaging slightly more than two per game. Shaquille O'Neal was traded from the Los Angeles Lakers to Miami in the summer before Wade's second season. Wade's scoring average, assists, and rebounding totals increased considerably in his second season with the Heat, and he quickly emerged as a rising superstar in the league. He was elected to his first NBA All-Star Game in Denver and came off the bench to score 14 points in leading the East to a 125-115 win. Compared to the previous year, the Miami Heat under Wade and O'Neal improved by 17 games, from a 42-40 record in the 2003-2004 season, to an Eastern Conference-best 59-23 record in 2004-2005. In the first round of the 2005 NBA playoffs (a sweep of the New Jersey Nets), Wade became only the seventh player in league history to average at least 25 points, eight assists and six rebounds while making half his shots in a playoff series, averaging 26.3 points, 8.8 assists, and 6.0 rebounds at 50% field-goal shooting (the other players to accomplish this are all members of the Basketball Hall of Fame: Bob Cousy, Oscar Robertson, Wilt Chamberlain, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan). Amazingly, Wade accomplished this feat once again in the 2nd round playoffs sweep of the Washington Wizards. Despite the Game 7 loss to Detroit in the Conference Finals, Wade scored 40 and 36 points respectively to negate the Pistons' trademark stifling defense. In the 2005-2006 NBA season, Wade was elected to his second All-Star Game in 2006, in which he made the game winning put-back of the Philadelphia 76ers' Allen Iverson's missed shot. Against the Chicago Bulls in the first round of the 2006 NBA Playoffs, Wade shook off a few close scares, including a severely bruised hip in Game 5. Returning late in the half to the surprise of all, Wade resurrected his team by scoring 15 of his 28 points while suffering from intense pain, leading the Heat to the much-needed 3-2 series lead. Wade was also recently named to the USA Basketball National Team from 2006-2008. The team will compete in the 2006 World Championships in Japan, and the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing (if necessary, the team will also compete at the Tournament of Americas Olympic Qualifiers in 2007). Wade is one of the marquee names on the team, along with Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, and Carmelo Anthony. Off-court The success of the Heat's 2005 playoff run and Wade's impressive performances with Shaquille O' Neal hampered by injury led to an explosion of media attention and popularity for the budding superstar. Entrepreneur Sean "Diddy" Combs signed him to a model contract to his Sean John clothing company, and Wade also appeared on the cover of EA Sports' NBA Live 2006 video game. In 2006, GQ magazine described him as "the best dressed player in the NBA." He is currently signed with the Heat through 2006-07. In 2005, he became the second ever Miami Heat player to be chosen as one of People Magazine's 50 most beautiful people. (The other was Alonzo Mourning.) In what was perhaps the best example of Wade's rising popularity, he finished #1 in jersey sales for the 2005-2006 season. http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2408871 Wade also endorses for Converse, who has made shoes under his name. Wade is also among the American Christian adults who tithe, according to the Sun Sentinel in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Wade gave 10% of his $2.6 million salary this season to the Blood, Water and Spirit Ministry in Chicago. Wade was a tither before he started playing in the NBA. A strong advocate for literacy, Wade encouraged children to read his favorite novel, Pride and Prejudice, as well as other literary classics. In his words, "It's one of my favorite books, which usually surprises people. I guess they wonder how a love story from Regency England could be relevant to a 21st century basketball player from the Southside of Chicago. Class struggle, overcoming stereotypes and humble beginnings, getting out of your own way and letting love take over: these are things I can relate to, definitely." Awards/honors NBA highlights * 2-time NBA All-Star: 2005, 2006 * 2-time All-NBA: :* Second Team: 2005, 2006 * All-Defense: :* Second Team: 2005 * NBA All-Rookie First Team: 2003 * NBA All-Star Skills Challenge Champion 2006 * Fifth in points per game (27.2): 2006 * Tenth in assists per game (6.7): 2006 * Sixth in steals per game (1.95): 2006 * One of two players in 2005-06 (along with the Philadelphia 76ers' Allen Iverson) who were in the top ten in points, assists and steals per game: 2006 NBA milestones * One of only seven players in NBA history to average 25 points, 8 rebounds, and 6 assists while shooting 50% or more from the field in a playoff series (the others are Bob Cousy, Oscar Robertson, Wilt Chamberlain, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan). Wade completed this task in two consecutive series in the 2005 playoffs. Miami Heat franchise records * Most consecutive games, 10 points or more: 76 (April 15, 2005 – April 8, 2006) http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/recap?gameId=260408027 * Most consecutive points scored, game: 17 (February 12, 2006 vs. Detroit Pistons) * Most points, game, playoffs: 42 (Game 4, 2005 Eastern Conference Semifinals vs. Washington Wizards) * Most points, quarter, playoffs: 22 (Game 4, 2005 Eastern Conference Semifinals vs. Washington Wizards) * Most assists, game, playoffs: 15 (Game 2, 2005 Eastern Conference Semifinals vs. Washington Wizards) External links * NBA.com Profile - Dwyane Wade * Official website * Dwyane's World - Official Fansite * Dwyane Wade Collection * NBA Fantasy Basketball Stats - Dwyane Wade * Dwyane Wade ? 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